Inside the Star

Hepburn: Sarah Palin and Tea Party anger in Canada

When Sarah Palin steps on stage next Thursday in Hamilton, she is expected to deliver her standard speech about family values, "snake-oil" climate change science and the need for lower taxes and smaller government.

When Sarah Palin steps on stage next Thursday in Hamilton, she is expected to deliver her standard speech about family values, "snake-oil" climate change science and the need for lower taxes and smaller government.

It's a speech Palin has given repeatedly across the United States in recent months to wildly cheering right-wing crowds, especially those linked to the Tea Party protest movement.

It's also a message that is finding support among an increasingly vocal group of angry and frustrated anti-taxers and libertarian activists in Canada.

This right-wing group fears Canada is going to ruin and hates everything from taxes and the federal government to Bay Street bankers, soft-on-crime judges, niqab-wearing women and the "elite" media.

In short, they're mad as hell and they're not going to take it anymore.

What's more, our politicians would be smart not to dismiss them too lightly.

For these Canadians, Palin isn't some oddball, but a real leader who offers "common sense" solutions. And for them, the Tea Party movement in the United States isn't filled with cranks, but true visionaries. If anything, they'd like to see a similar nationwide movement in Canada.

Palin, who normally charges $100,000 for a speech, is to appear at Carmen's Banquet Centre in Hamilton. Tickets cost $200. A few of the 850 tickets are still for sale.

Initially, the money raised at the event was to go to the Juravinski Cancer Centre and St. Peter's Hospital in Hamilton. But the hospitals quickly backed out after local residents voiced strong opposition to Palin because of her attacks on Canada's medicare system.

The event will now benefit the Charity of Hope, which raises money for local children on behalf of school boards, youth groups and other organizations in the Hamilton area.

This will be the second time Palin has appeared in Canada since she stepped down as governor of Alaska with 17 months to go in her first term. Last month, she charmed a Calgary audience by bashing the "radical environmental movement" and praising Canada's Olympic hockey teams.

Her trip to Hamilton will be quick because she is also speaking the same day at a Tea Party rally in Washington. Tea Party refers to the Boston Tea Party of 1773 when American colonists protested against taxes imposed by their British rulers.

She connects with hard-right conservatives on both sides of the border who rail at double-digit unemployment, big government spending, taxes, mortgage collapses, illegal aliens, lost pensions and anyone who criticizes the military.

She's perky and spunky – and has almost no chance of being the next president, or even the next Republican nominee, according to the latest U.S. polls.

Still, Palin is a torchbearer for Canadians who would love to see a movement here similar to the Tea Party.

Indeed, the movement is starting to flex its muscle in regional elections.

In Alberta, the fledgling far-right Wildrose Alliance is challenging the governing Conservatives. In Toronto, outspoken right-wing City Councillor Rob Ford, who portrays himself as a champion of "the little guy," drew 1,600 people to the launch of his mayoral campaign, by far the largest turnout for any candidate.

Cheered on by radio talk show hosts and conservative columnists, this far-right movement will be around for a long time, continuing to grow before it eventually declines.

It will fade because while its proponents love to rant about what's wrong with government and are against anyone who disagrees with them – as I learned last week after writing that Rob Ford would make a poor mayor – they offer no positive ideas or realistic solutions to the complex issues facing our cities, provinces and country.

But clearly, Sarah Palin's speech will inspire Tea Party wannabes in Canada. And once stirred up, they will be hard for any politician – or voter – to ignore.

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